Remember to check back for updates on a regular basis.
Today we're hosting a live blog, covering the latest rumors, signings, or trades involving, affecting, or tangentially impacting the Cowboys. You can use the comments section as your free agency open thread (newest updates will be at the top of the live blog below).
2016 Cowboys Free Agency Live Blog - Day 3
3:45 pm EST: Potential Cowboys draft target Sidney Jones was reportedly injured at the Washington Pro Day and had to be carted off. Early reports say it's a torn Achilles for the Jones.
2:50 pm EST: Free agency may be hogging the headlines, but draft preparations continue unabated. Here's one under-the-radar prospect the Cowboys showed interest in at a recet pro day, per Tony Pauline of draftanalyst.com.
Colorado defensive lineman Samson Kafovalu turned a lot of heads with his workout yesterday. The senior measured 6040/299lbs, timed as low as 4.94s on several watches and also completed 33 reps on the bench press. His other marks included 32.5 inches in the vertical jump and 8-foot-8 in the broad jump. Kafovalu, projected at end in a 3-4 alignment as well as tackle in a 4-3, is drawing strong interest from the Cincinnati Bengals, Dallas Cowboys, San Diego Chargers, Baltimore Ravens and Miami Dolphins.
2:40 pm EST: Mary Cay Cabot of the Cleveland Plains Dealer reports that the Browns shopping Brock Osweiler and a 5th for a 3rd and will cut him if they can't trade him. Of course, just because the Browns are offering, doesn't mean anybody will accept, but if a clown like Osweiler is worth a third, what does that tell you about Romo's value?
2:34 pm EST: The Patriots announced they've signed Ravens DL Lawrence Guy to a four-year deal. Baltimore would have liked to keep Guy (see 12:32 pm entry below). Does this increase their interest in Morris Claiborne?
2:00 pm EST: The Cowboys are still holding out hope for a Tony Romo trade, but the odds of that happening may not be so great.
Based off multiple people inside league, it would be a major upset if Dallas is able to trade Tony Romo. Cowboys will have to release him.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 11, 2017
1:42 pm EST: Todd Archer is reporting that Doug Free has informed the team he intends to retire.
The Cowboys will have another hole to fill. Right tackle Doug Free has informed the team he intends to retire, according to sources. Free, 33, has started every game he has played since 2010 and has been the right tackle since 2012. The Cowboys drafted Chaz Green in the third round in 2015 but he has battled hip, foot and back injuries his first two seasons.
12:32 pm EST: The Ravens have been rumored to be interested in Morris Claiborne for quite a while now, and their interest remains unabated. In a game of how-low-can-you-go, will the Ravens or Cowboys blink first?
Ravens have been active and remain so. Would love to retain DL Lawrence Guy and they continue to monitor vet CBs like Claiborne
— Jason La Canfora (@JasonLaCanfora) March 11, 2017
12:24 pm EST: The Cowboys will likely turn their attention to re-signing Morris Claiborne and Brandon Carr at some point. For now, the team is waiting for the market to drop for cornerbacks, but if Claiborne and Carr are the top CBs left on the market, as Evan Silva indicates below, neither players' price might drop enough to re-sign in Dallas.
Top CBs left in free agency:
— Evan Silva (@evansilva) March 11, 2017
Mo Claiborne
Brandon Carr
Deshawn Shead
Darrelle Revis
Sam Shields
Kayvon Webster
Alterraun Verner
Davon House
11:50 am EST: Look at this list of available "top" free agent QBs and tell me the Cowboys have no leverage with regard to Tony Romo.
Top QBs left on the free agent market:
— Evan Silva (@evansilva) March 11, 2017
Jay Cutler
Colin Kaepernick
Nick Foles
Ryan Fitzpatrick
Geno Smith
Josh McCown
Robert Griffin III
11:40 am EST: A little humor to mix in with the rumors.
"Washington Redskins Owner Dan Snyder Has Found a New Way to Suck" is a retitled story on Yahoo that was originally published on GQ and in which Drew Magary writes about "the firing of the Redskins GM and Dan Snyder's indefatigable twerpitude."
11:30 am EST: Meanwhile, a player still under contract in Dallas is already busy getting ready for the next season.
Cowboys QB Dak Prescott has been training in Orlando with @CoachTomShaw for 3 weeks. Takes time out to talk: https://t.co/jGHn2DB4vx
— Brandon George (@DMN_George) March 11, 2017
10:30 am EST: Anxious to figure out how Wilcox's departure impacts the Cowboys comp picks in 2018? Fret not, here's our updated tracker that shows the Cowboys back up to three comp picks:
Dallas Cowboys Comp Pick Tracker | ||||||
Qualifying Free Agents Lost: 4 | Qualifying Free Agents Gained: 0 | |||||
Name | Rd. | Annual Value | Name | Rd. | Annual Value | |
Ronald Leary | 4th | $8,750,000 | - - | - - | ||
Barry Church | 4th | $6,500,000 | - - | - - | ||
Terrell McClain | 5th | $5,250,000 | - - | - - | ||
J.J. Wilcox | 6th | $4,250,000 | Nolan Carroll | $3,333,333 | ||
Jack Crawford | 6th | $3,433,333 | Stephen Paea | $2,000,000 | ||
Non-Compensatory free agents | ||||||
Terrance Williams | $4,125,000 | |||||
Brice Butler | $1,100,000 | |||||
Damontre Moore | tbd | |||||
David Irving | $615,000 |
10:20 am EST: The early rumor is confirmed, J.J. Wilcox signs in Tampa.
Done deal for S JJ Wilcox in Tampa, as @BigDogwdae reported. Source says it's a 2-year deal worth up to $8.5m.
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) March 11, 2017
9:35 am EST: Rumors emerging of J.J. Wilcox possibly signing in Tampa. The news comes from the dean of Tampa Bay sports radio, Steve Duemig of WDAE-AM 620. He dropped the word this morning via Twitter.
According to my very good source, the Bucs will sign safety JJ Wilcox today.
— Steve (@BigDogwdae) March 11, 2017
9.05 am EST: CBS Sports broke down the winners and losers from Friday's free agency action, and have the Cowboys on the winning side.
The Cowboys: They didn’t do anything splashy Friday, but they made a nice few moves to address their depth.
They reportedly re-signed Terrance Williams to a four-year deal. The Cowboys also reportedly signed Stephen Paea to bolster the interior of their defensive line. The Cowboys also reportedly added [Nolan Carroll] to the mix.
None of these players are household names, but that’s OK. A team like the Cowboys, who went 13-3 last year, doesn’t need to make any splashy signings. They just need to bolster their roster and fix some of their weaknesses. That’s what they did Friday.
8:50 am EST: Pro Football Focus grades every free agent move, and they gave the Cowboys an 'A' for re-signing Terrance Williams.
Grade: A
Dallas does a nice job in locking up a solid receiving option for extremely modest money. Williams may be capped in terms of his role in Dallas, but he has been a big-play threat for the team with receptions for at least 42 yards in each of his four seasons, and catches of longer than 75 yards in two of them.
8:45 am EST: As the NFL gets ready for day three of free agency, NFL.com offers a look at where things stand for the top 101 free agents.
5:07 am EST: Ever wonder how the Patriots created so much cap space? Here's one way:
How to create cap space: Last 5 years of #Patriots 1st-rd picks
— One Cool Customer (@OCC44) March 11, 2017
2012: gone
2012: gone
2013: none
2014: gone
2015: Starter
2016: none
5:00 am EST: We kicked of this bright and sunshiny day with a recap of yesterday's flurry of free agent activity by the Cowboys - and some stuff on Tony Romo.
Cowboys News: Dallas May Need To Rework Tony Romo's Contract Before Trade Can Happen https://t.co/XJYEbiE985
— Blogging The Boys (@BloggingTheBoys) March 11, 2017